Drawn From Still Waters Top 5, 2008.

So its time to let the dust settle on 2008; and list my favourite CDs for the year. A couple of unlucky contenders which missed out were: Laura Marling (Alas I Cannot Swim) Martha Wainwright (I Know You're Married But I Have Feelings Too), and Coldplay's Viva La Vida.

:: 5 Colm Mac Con Iomaire (The Hare's Corner)
Colm is the fiddler from the great Irish band The Frames. Instrumental CD's can be a bore, but this one really works, and the interplay between instruments works so well

:: 4 Jon Foreman (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer - EPs)
Another singer-songwriter whose songs are beautiful constructed, and reflect spiritual truths from the various seasons of our lives.

:: 3 Sigur Ros (with a buzz in our ears we play endlessly)
One of the more accessible albums from this great group. When I saw the band perform live earlier this year the accessibility of the band was highlighted by the increasing interaction between the band and the crowd.

:: 2 Conor Oberst (Conor Oberst)
The self-titled album was the first album for sometime which he did without his band Bright Eyes, I love the vivid pictures he paints with his song-lyrics in contrast to the great fun numbers like I Don't Wanna Die in a Hospital.

:: 1 Andrew Osenga - Letters to the Editor II
I really enjoy the honest and meaningful lyrics, and the style of music he performs. The Letters project is an EP involving collaborations with fans. I'm looking to hearing more from him during 2009 (Hopefully).

~~~

And on the horizon, for 2009, I'm hoping to hear more news of a Radiohead tour, and I am slowly getting more excited about seeing Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova in January. In terms of new albums -- confirmation of a new U2 album brings excitement, but not sure what other excitement 2009 will bring.